SMASH* Folios by K&Company

Hey everyone!

In January of this year, I came across a very interesting product, or series of products rather, when searching for fun journals on Amazon. I came across the SMASH* series by mistake, and it was the best mistake in the world. 

Smash books are basically pre-made scrapbooks. They are spiral notebooks filled with really pretty paper, and every book has its own color and theme. Ever since I first discovered them, I have fallen completely in love! 

I personally really enjoy collecting scraps of memories, but I've never quite known where to put them all. They've always just disappeared in the giant clutter that is my junk drawer; little notes from friends, photographs, magazine and newspaper snippets, concert tickets, and other random bits and bobs. The SMASH book is basically the scrapbook/journal version of a junk drawer. There is ALWAYS room for more stuff. I like to take a double page, theme it and just start randomly pasting things I find appropriate to generate something like this:

Four Corners Folk Festival Page

It has now become one of my favorite ways to reduce stress after a long day. I am studying graphic design in college, so my day is full of brainstorming and doing projects and the need to come up with very witty and creative compositions constantly can be so overwhelming. The thing I love about smash books, is that there is no right or wrong way to smash. You just do it. No thinking, no detailed planning. It's just ready, set, go. It's the only time I find myself not trying to make everything look absolutely perfect, but just do whatever I feel like then and there. And BAAAMM! In the end, I'm usually pretty thrilled the results! 
I would recommend these products to...well...anyone who enjoys crafting or anyone who has ever wanted to experiment with scrapbooking, but was afraid to. These books are so much easier to use, because part of the work has been done for you. The pages are there. All you need to do is provide the content. It makes scrapbooking less intimidating and also much less time consuming for people who can only spare a little time. 


I'd highly recommend watching the video introducing the product and telling me what you think. Have fun and happy smashing!

P.S.: There is an AWESOME SMASH* addicts group on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/367533496595102/

It's just a great group of people who share the same hobby, pictures of their creations and where to find the greatest deals on supplies. As a matter of fact, I even found a pen pal! They've also begun a swap, where you and a selected partner send each other a package of random scrapbooking supples. :) I'd highly recommend checking out the group!

EDIT: People were being deleted and banned from the group for not following ridiculous rules. Those who questioned members being banned were also banned. I was also banned from the group, but did nothing wrong. So I say a bit GOOD RIDDANCE to that group! I'm in a new one now. I wish I had found it sooner!!

http://www.facebook.com/groups/197194490365275/